Search continues for stolen plane believed to have crash into Gulf

GULF SHORES, Alabama -- Authorities searched all day today for a stolen plane that is believed to have crashed into the Gulf of Mexico.

The Piper PA-28 Cherokee took off from Jack Edwards Airport at 7:05 a.m. today, and the pilot had not been authorized to fly the plane, according to Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown.

The man flying the plane, who was a licensed pilot, had been scheduled for a flight lesson but left without his instructor, according to the airport's manager Russ Kilgore.

After about 4 hours in the air, the aircraft fell about 600 feet in 3
minutes and the FAA lost radar contact somewhere about 40 miles southeast of
Venice, La., according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Using a helicopter and an 87-foot cutter, the Coast Guard was searching a
2,500-square-mile area where the FAA last had contact, according to a Coast
Guard news release.

"There are currently no signs of a downed aircraft or a debris field in the
vicinity of the aircraft’s last known position," the release states.

Before disappearing over the Gulf, the plane had flown over the south end of
Baldwin and Mobile counties, Gulf Shores Police Lt. Bill Cowan said.

The plane was registered with Gulf Air Charter Inc., which is based at Jack Edwards, according to Brown. The pilot, who has not been in communication with the FAA since takeoff, was believed to be the only person aboard the aircraft, Brown said.

The plane had a full load of fuel that could last about 4.5 hours of flight time or 460 miles.